Here we go again

Been years now on the RC8Rs. I liked them but never loved them. Not like the SDR. F**k that bike still calls out to me.

So what's the deal with the 1290? I put a few miles on a stocker and loved it. Seat needs some work for racing, possibly rounder would help, maybe the bars reinforced, pipes for ground clearance, valve kit for the forks a damper and a decent shock are pretty standard. But what about a belly pan? Does anyone make one for this bike yet? What's the best exhaust for it?

You have no idea... or, wait a minute, I forgot who I am talking to here. ....you know exactly how cool it will feel to race a 990 again, but this time as a 1290. F**k I love this bike

for HP talk to kevXTX... he is putting out 170rwhp these days...

teed has done a bit of track time... he leans his bike over more than anyone else i have ever seen, i would talk to him about a belly pan and clearance.

Comrade Gogo: The biggest problem with this bike at the moment is that it is difficult to load your own maps. KTM can put in an Akro map for the Evo system but that is all that can be done thus tuning and alternative exhaust options are limited. Austin Racing can sell something that is a little louder but it designed to use the Akro map.

Kevxtx in Brisbane has details of how to install a Power Commander but that technique is somewhat round about as you'd know. He's got lots of info on exhausts and power profiles as well.

Still great bike, enjoy.

So we're still at the beginning of this learning curve then. Sounds sexy. Thanks for the tips brothers! This could be a lot of fun. Haven't owned the bike under me since 04. Really looking forward to it.

In short HP is not a problem. I run the rotty filter, akra map a PCV and decatted it, thats all.
Raci...err... riding against a ZX 10R yesterday the front lifts out of the corners in 4th gear no clutch. Probably does it in 5th too but we don't have turns like that here to try it.
I've been talking to put it on the dyno to see what it pumps out and If I can find the time I take it there this week.

Frame is solid and doesn't need any work, suspension will need heaps of work for racing. On the road it's more than OK for my weight and riding but for racing it will need serious attention.
Another thing to look at for serious racing will be the electronics. Basically you can switch TC and ABS off but other issues like throttle openings might need looking at.

Quick shifter is a necessity and so far only fuel cut works. Ignition cut combined with back fire in the exhaust drops the shims out the valve cups, not good!
As you know the ignition cut systems are way more sophisticated as the fuel cut and offer benefits but so far a no go on this engine!

In the AFM we'll run the same classes as the RC8R - Open Twins, Open GP/Superbike/and of course Formula Pacific. Not that we ran all those classes in the past, just those are our choices. I ran the bike on the street. Love the power, think it's faster than our RC8R with 2ml pistons in it. To be honest I can't feel things like the frame. Sure I experience the flex, I just can't tell it from the tyres or swingarm. Having said that, reinforcing our swingarm on the old SDR made huge differences in places you definitely could fee. I agree the suspension is soft for the track but that's expected. That bike was a pleasure to ride on the road, I kept taking it to the mountains which are right up the road.

Suspension is a wild animal to tame for me, which probably is a crap analogy because I really love wild animals. I am not very good at sorting out issues with dials and springs. Usually I ride through issues because I have no other choice. RC8R was the most elusive bike I ever tried to sort. Three seasons in and I never got it as good as I know it could have been. The SDR was different. The Ducatis were different, all of them. I guess now the RC8R is in the books for me, and I'll always feel I didn't do it justice.

I assume the swingarm on this thing is stable. It looks strong as hell. I'll try to steal the WP off our our RC8R, and have KFG put their cartridge kit in the forks. That should do wonders. I remember the bars flexing on the SDR. Also the angle wasn't great for full lean, it tweaked my wrists. We used Hyper Motard bars instead, big improvement.

Thanks for all the tips. Very helpful

GoGo, This is late notice, but I am headed to THill tomorrow, and will be brining my Superduke R so that EDR can take it up North for tuning. It has moderate work, currently dyno'd at 168HP. Suspension is stock. You are more than welcome to take it out and run some laps.

Gavin AFM 184

Are you running it this season in Open Twins?

I think the swingarm is the softest part on the bike, grab a hold of the rear and push the swingarm and you can see it move a bit.

Nope It is my street bike. Will run the CBR again this year. If you were just looking to get a feel of the bike on a track it will be at Sonoma the end of the. Month

I rode one 600 miles in the mountains mostly. Love the beast. They made me wheelie it down Clarian Alley. Tight alley, graffiti painted pavement, shop throwing buckets of water out onto the ground in front of me, and I didn't know the bike at all. That morning was retarded. Hard to believe the swingarm is flexing. Shit. The old one flexed like those air filled gumby dolls you see outside tyre shops

Please prove the flexing swingarm theory wrong. Please. This one looks a lot harder to reinforce than the last..

I put in a couple of track sessions on the 1290, here are my comments:

First, this is my street bike, and was never intended to be my track bike. It still has the OEM tyres, and the suspension was set for plush bumpy road riding. I just wanted t see what it felt like on the track. After riding all morning on a CBR 1000RR with clip ons and rear sets, getting on the Duke felt like getting on a dirt bike. It was unnatural for me to go fast in this position. The bucket shaped seat which is so comfortable on the street, made getting off the side difficult and uncomfortable. By the time I got a knee down I was all twisted up, and the body positioning I have been working on so hard for the past few years was impossible. Accelerating down the straight was fun, but the light front end definitely had the bars wiggling around, and the wind force had me hanging onto the bars at high speeds. Definitely needs a real steering damper, and some type of wind protection. Front brakes were fantastic. Too good for my mushy front end, I found that I was collapsing the front end instantaneously.

Turn in was quick as ever, corner stability/tracking was great, and drive out of the corners with excellent with the exception of the non linear throttle. The first 1/2 of the throttle provides about as much power as a SV 650, then it comes on strong and hard. So rolling on the gas requires a non linear throttle response to correct for the non linear throttle Being a 4 cylinder guy, I found myself hitting the rev limiter in just about every gear, wondering where the extra 4K RPM was. Warning, next few sentences are my gripe to KTM. I fully understand the need for KTM to tame this beast with electronics to cater to the general market place. What I don't understand is why they don't allow users to take advantage of the customizable electronics by offering software tools for customizing throttle curves, traction control, wheelie control etc... Paying extra for all of the BS electronics (Off Road mode, really???), only to have to buy dongles to get rid of them is retarded. Scrolling through dozens of menus each time you start up the bike to get it into the least obtrusive mode is unacceptable! Rider aids need to be programmable and variable - don't try and ride the bike for me! Dials and switches (like on Bazzazz) are much better than scrolling through menus. Bitch session over...

Bottom line- It was fun to ride, and is definitely capable of carrying its own at the track. For me, this is not what a race bike feels like, and I am too old to learn new tricks. GoGo, I think this is right up your ally! Only you are capable of starting with something that is not intended to be a race bike and develop it into a machine that along with your talent will kick the ass of Work Superbike Spec machines. Think of the journey you will have taking on a project like this, I cant wait to read the Blogs....

Excellent info, thanks for taking the time. Quick questions since I am brand new to this bike, still:

1 - There are dongles to bypass parts of the electronics?

2 - Is Austin the best source for a race exhaust? I don't care about sound I want light weight and ground clearance.

I will have a top level cartridge kit made for the forks, and I'm throwing the shock and dampener in a box. You have Orangutan size balls to run this thing on the track with the stock not-a-damper, never mind the stock front tyre, which I dislike the profile of immensely. Yes I hate the seat for the track, love the seat for the road. Also hated the old SDR bars for the track, they stress your wrists at full lean. So far all the issues I am aware of are easy mods. However I know nothing about electronics, and knew nothing about the non-linear throttle response. You just can't judge that stuff on the road.

I expect, much like the old SDR, that the airbox could use more air. Haven't looked closely yet though.

3 - Does anyone make a 1290 bellypan yet? If not, it's time to play with clay again. I've seen a few in shots here and about, but I can't seem to find them for sale.

I love single sided swingarms for tyre swaps, but miss the rear stand spools for starts. Shit

RE the dongle:
The dongle doesn't bypass electronics. It just allows the ABS and TC to remain in the last selected position when the key is turned on and off instead of returning to all on mode.

RE off road mode:
If you have off road mode your software is faulty and the bike should be reflashed and setup correctly! The software is the same for 1290 SDR and ADV and the software needs to be initialised correctly for the bike.
The Off road ABS mode is for the ADV, on the SDR it's supermoto setting.

RE flex in the swingarm. I had a look at mine yesterday and I can't detect any flex. If you have movement in the swingarm I think it might be swingarm bearing related or something.

RE riding position and screen.
Totally agreed it needs some screen. For the riding position it is like a KTM dirt bike, put weight on the front to turn. I personally have no issue swapping in between a faired IL4 and the SDR.

Thanks about the dongle. If I end up with a cartridge kit for the forks I"ll pass it on. Still have to get a bike though so right now I'm talking out of my arse.